Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 852

“Ugh, I’m going to die.”

Bang Jin-hoon was completely slumped over.

‘Why is this so exhausting?’

Even though broadcasting requires a certain level of physical stamina, Bang Jin-hoon was a martial artist. Even ordinary people could record for 24 hours, so there was no way Bang Jin-hoon would be exhausted after just a few hours of broadcasting.

‘Logically, that’s how it should be…’

It felt like he had done intense training for three days straight. His whole body felt heavy, like a waterlogged cotton ball.

“Tae-hoon…

Coffee… a cup of coffee…”

Bang Jin-hoon, who was turning his head to look for Chun Tae-hoon, closed his mouth.

Chun Tae-hoon was slumped over at the desk in front of him.

‘He’s a squid.’

The way he was drooping looked like a freshly dead squid. If he was left alone a little longer, he might evolve into an octopus.

“Ugh…”

Chun Tae-hoon raised his body like a zombie. Every time his joints moved, there was a clunking sound.

“C-coffee? Master?”

“No, never mind.”

Bang Jin-hoon shook his head. He still had a conscience. He couldn’t ask someone in that state to make him coffee.

“Just sit here for a bit.”

Chun Tae-hoon staggered over and sat down. Bang Jin-hoon sighed as he looked at his slumped figure.

“We don’t have to do any more live broadcasts for a while, right?”

“That’s right.”

Chun Tae-hoon swallowed the rest of his words.

‘If there’s no content to supplement.’

But how could that be possible?

Bang Jin-hoon hadn’t seen his own broadcast yet. If he checked the video before it was released, he would either foam at the mouth demanding revisions or try to re-shoot the whole thing.

He wasn’t enthusiastic about broadcasting, but he had to correct and supplement any sloppy content.

“How can this be so draining?”

Bang Jin-hoon wiped the sweat that was beading on his forehead with his sleeve. The broadcast was already over, but the tension wouldn’t go away.

“Those bastards.”

Chun Tae-hoon was also worked up in his own way.

Bang Jin-hoon didn’t know because he hadn’t monitored the screen, but towards the end of the broadcast, the content was barely getting through because of all the balloons popping up [virtual gifts sent by viewers].

They should have blocked the balloons systemically, but they didn’t know how to do it because they didn’t have any experience.

“They have so much money, those crazy bastards!”

Come to think of it, that was only natural.

The guys in the General Assembly all lived in the mountains, training. The problem was that the money they received was by no means small.

The money a martial artist who had just turned twenty received might not be that much, but compared to the amount of money that ordinary people of that age poured into college and education, they received an excessive amount of money.

While others were struggling to earn money to spend, these guys were accumulating money in their bank accounts just by training, and they could spend it relatively freely.

So, they had no choice but to have money left over.

On top of that, they had been told to be frugal since they were young, so they didn’t know how to spend money.

“But Master, now that I think about it, there’s something strange.”

“What?”

“Why do the older members of the Assembly emphasize frugality so much?”

“Because they don’t have money.”

“••••••Huh?”

Bang Jin-hoon answered again nonchalantly.

“Because they don’t have money.”

Bang Jin-hoon chuckled when he saw Chun Tae-hoon looking dumbfounded.

“If you have money, why would you tell people to save it? You tell them to save it because there’s something you need to spend it on, but you don’t have the money.”

“No, that money is…”

“We have it now.”

In fact, the martial artists of the General Assembly were quite wealthy. That was one of the reasons why young martial artists were so desperate to master martial arts. It was statistically several times easier to succeed and make money in the martial arts world than to succeed and make money in the outside world.

“But they didn’t have it in the past. Think about it. What kind of money would a martial artist have? When they were walking around with swords and cutting off people’s heads, the strongest was the best. The strongest guy took power and got money. And what was our previous era?”

“…The Joseon Dynasty [Korean kingdom from 1392 to 1897].”

“I heard it was very hard to live back then. Even if you were just walking around with a sword, the local police would come after you.”

Chun Tae-hoon nodded blankly.

That made sense. In the Joseon Dynasty, private soldiers were abolished, and only the central government could have an army. The martial arts regime of the late Goryeo Dynasty [Korean kingdom from 918 to 1392] had raised the level of vigilance against martial artists to an extreme.

Moreover, since Taejo Yi Seong-gye [founder of the Joseon Dynasty] was a martial artist, he was extremely wary of martial artists for fear of suffering the same fate. In addition, as Confucianism became the nation’s scholarship, martial artists became despised.

“They were all nobles who lived in the mountains, tilling fields and hunting for food. So, they kept telling us to be frugal, to be frugal. It’s funny when you think about it. That’s only meaningful for people who don’t have to be frugal, why would you say that to people who are forced to be frugal?”

Chun Tae-hoon nodded, somewhat convinced.

“So, that’s how it’s been passed down, and frugality has become a virtue in the Korean martial arts world.”

“Virtue, my ass.”

Bang Jin-hoon chuckled.

“I told you, frugality is a virtue for people who have money. People who don’t have money have to be frugal anyway. Did those elders who always talked about saving and frugality, and how martial artists shouldn’t covet wealth, do that after they made money?”

“This isn’t some German car showroom… No, these guys didn’t have anyone who drove a domestic car. They talked about frugality, but they all drove top-of-the-line cars. They had huge houses, and villas too.”

“Master, you drive a nice car too.”

“That’s why I don’t tell you to be frugal. Right? I tell you to make a lot of money.”

“That’s true.”

“People should practice what they preach. It was ridiculous and absurd to see someone who nagged his disciples for using expensive equipment get into a large sedan with a driver when he went home. And then what? Frugality? Frugality, my ass?”

Bang Jin-hoon shook his head.

“They should mind their own business.”

Chun Tae-hoon laughed awkwardly at the torrent of harsh words.

Come to think of it, that kind of thing was common in the past. They would save on food expenses for their subordinates while they lived in luxury.

And back then, they thought it was normal. From Chun Tae-hoon’s perspective, it wasn’t that the others were corrupt, but that Bang Jin-hoon seemed abnormal.

“Thinking about it, Master, you were really frugal.”

“Hey, did you even hear what I said?”

“••••••Yes?”

“I said it wasn’t frugality, it was because I didn’t have money!”

Bang Jin-hoon’s face contorted.

“Why wouldn’t you have money, Master?”

“Where would I get money, you crazy bastard! Of course, I had some power, but unlike the other directors, I had a lot of places to spend money. Where do you think the money you guys used to eat and sleep came from? And do you think I was able to persuade the other guys with just my words?”

“That’s all money. I spent more than I earned. I even had to use my own personal funds. That’s why I still haven’t gotten married…”

At that moment, the door burst open, and Lee Hyun-soo and Kang Jin-ho entered.

“You’re here?”

“Greetings, Assembly Leader.”

Kang Jin-ho nodded to acknowledge the greeting and then smiled slightly.

“I watched the broadcast.”

“…You watched it too?”

“It was cool.”

Bang Jin-hoon sighed deeply. But Chun Tae-hoon’s reaction was completely different.

Chun Tae-hoon’s face flushed when he saw Kang Jin-ho. He looked full of complaints. But he couldn’t bring himself to question Kang Jin-ho, so he quietly got up and slowly approached Lee Hyun-soo.

“Why?”

Lee Hyun-soo asked with a questioning look, and Chun Tae-hoon whispered quietly.

“The Assembly Leader was sending balloons earlier.”

“Ah, that? I told him how to do it.”

“Because the Assembly Leader was sending balloons, everyone went crazy and started sending them. You should have stopped him.”

“Who? Me? The Assembly Leader?”

Ah….

Chun Tae-hoon was reminded of reality by Lee Hyun-soo’s dumbfounded reaction.

‘Yeah, who could stop that guy.’

Chun Tae-hoon shook his head, realizing that he had said something ridiculous.

After Kang Jin-ho sat in the head seat, everyone sat down.

“The method seems interesting.”

Bang Jin-hoon turned his head to Chun Tae-hoon. It meant that he didn’t know, so he should answer.

“Thank you.”

And Chun Tae-hoon responded immediately.

“Are there any problems?”

“Yes. Not everyone has logged in yet, so there’s a problem with those who haven’t been educated, but since we’re planning to upload the video we recorded today, everyone will be able to watch it, even if it’s a little late.”

“However, from now on, we need to upload the videos to our own site. The amount of content is more than we thought, and the high quality takes up a lot of space. Whether we do live streaming or a download service, if all the members connect, the traffic will be insane, so we need our own server.”

Kang Jin-ho smiled.

“I see.”

“Yes.”

“Then what should we do?”

Listening was Kang Jin-ho’s job.

But thinking wasn’t Kang Jin-ho’s job. What was he supposed to think about when he didn’t even understand?

“I’ll discuss it with Elder Jang Min and come up with a solution. It costs money to build and operate a server. You just need to approve that part.”

“I approve.”

Kang Jin-ho answered cleanly and turned his head to Lee Hyun-soo.

“Did you hear that?”

“…I’ll let them know.”

What could he do when he didn’t understand?

Chun Tae-hoon and Jang Min weren’t the type to embezzle, so he had no choice but to trust them.

“Okay, that’s settled then. How is it? Is it manageable?”

“I’m going to die.”

Bang Jin-hoon waved his hand.

“Ah, this is more stressful than I thought. I used to watch TV and say that those celebrities were making money while playing around, but I’ve decided not to say that anymore. They say you have to experience something to know it.”

Kang Jin-ho laughed as he watched Bang Jin-hoon clutching his head.

“Can you keep doing it?”

“I have to.”

His face was tearful, but his answer was firm.

“In a way, it’s only natural. Teaching that many kids at the same time is like condensing a class that should take 20 sessions into one, so it’s natural that it’s 20 times harder.”

Bang Jin-hoon scratched his head and smiled lightly without realizing it.

“It’s unfamiliar and difficult, but I think this method might be able to change something in the future. I don’t know for sure, though.”

“I think so too.”

Kang Jin-ho wrapped up the situation.

“But it’s so awkward.”

Kang Jin-ho couldn’t help but cover his mouth. He was reminded of Bang Jin-hoon’s stiff movements in front of the screen, like a person whose limbs were frozen.

It was the first time he had ever seen such a stiff martial artist.

“You need to work on it.”

“I’m going to die. I’m really going to die.”

“You’ll get better as you go.”

Kang Jin-ho shrugged and was about to get up from his seat when Lee Hyun-soo raised his hand.

“But Assembly Leader.”

“Yes?”

“What do you think about this method?”

Why is he asking this here?

Kang Jin-ho tilted his head and answered.

“There are problems, but I see it as progress. We can fix the minor problems as we go.”

“Do you think this is a method that should be adopted in the future for the entire Assembly?”

“Well, we can’t completely abandon the apprenticeship system, but it should be done in parallel.”

“I see.”

Lee Hyun-soo curled up the corners of his mouth into a smirk.

“Then, for the sake of the Assembly, we should make all future lectures into videos. Right?”

“••••••Huh?”

Lee Hyun-soo turned his head to look at Chun Tae-hoon.

“Make another studio.”

“Yes?”

“We’re going to open a new course. The lecture title is ‘Introduction to Demonic Arts.’”

The final blow had landed.

“I trust that a man wouldn’t go back on his word, Assembly Leader.”

It was the moment when the Assembly’s ‘Cut’ [referring to the number of courses] increased to two.